Off the Map
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Movie Reviews of Off the Map
Movie Review: ** mystery and magic in the desert southwest**
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie was a gift to me and I was told that I needed to own it. OK, I was game but I had never even heard of this movie, but I do enjoy offbeat and independent films, so what the heck.
At first, I really didn't know what to make of this movie, it seemed a bit slow and without order. Since it was already in progress and there was nothing better to do at the time, I just waited a while and then starts moving and things get interesting.
Without warning, like shape-shifting, transporting you to a "magical" and beautiful place as is the desert itself. A place where a family living among nature and under the big beautiful sky of New Mexico is carving out a self-sufficient existence with "just-enough" money but a whole lot of love.
The father that is temporarily depressed, the mother whom is a decendent of Hopi indians, and the delightful sunshine of a daughter, live and love among the cactus, mountains and coyotes trying to cope with everyday life in a unique environment.
There is sooo much going on in this movie, it really is hard to convey what's up.....anway....
Then comes a stranger with a briefcase from the IRS to begin an audit. The agent comes upon the young girl's Mother, weeding in the garden naked, and that's all the plot you are going to get out of me, because the rest is amazing.
From there, you are completely captivated.
When this film is over, you feel uplifted and enriched, (even though there are a few sad moments along the way), and ultimately rewarded with a treat for the soul!
Movie Review: Definately not a typical movie, but definitly not in your average filming venue either!
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is a one of a kind work of art, shot in a one of a kind location, New Mexico. A family who lives in an honest and simple way can be dsyfunctional too. Depression hits the dad, Sam Elliot -a long time favorite of mine, and he has no clue why or how to end it. Mom, Joan Allen-also an excellent actress who shows us a character who is strong and unique, does whatever she can to bring his spirits back up, but really to no avail. The daughter is captivating and will win your heart almost immediately. Of couse this is really her story, as told by her, but she discovers the cure for her dad and it is priceless! Then there is the Stray IRS agent who comes to collect back taxes but, just doesn't leave staying on, welcomed by this odd but endearing family living off the grid, and is in awe of the beauty of the New Mexian landscape . He then discovers his real passion in life, explores and develops it and the result is a classic in my movie library. On a side note, if you have never experienced the raw beauty of the New Mexico landscape and been captivated by the colors changing in the evening sky, this movie is a must. Yes, I am partial to the state as a resident, but this movie captures the essence of why it is the Land of Enchantment!Movie Review: Off the Map
Summary: 5 Stars
I was prompted to see this movie by an interview of Campbell Scott published in a local(Albuquerque) alternative newspaper. The stage for this movie is the desolate high desert of New Mexico during the early 1970s and is about a family living "Off the Map" although it could as easily been titled "Off the Grid" (that is, not subscribing to any of the public utilities that make life a rat race). The family is surviving on the veteran's benefits of the father (not "off the land" as indicated in many other publications), the crafts and bartering of the mother, and the scams of their daughter who is the real brains of this operation. This is a movie for someone who appreciates an accurate character portrait when he sees one. In the process of trying to buy some cheap property in New Mexico I encountered piece-meal the characters of this movie which Joan Ackermann (whose play this movie is based on and who wrote the screenplay) describes quite accurately. It is clear to me Joan has spent some time off the beaten track in New Mexico. The plot twists and surprises, the stark images of New Mexico, the characters, and the life style portrait are more than worth the price of admission.Movie Review: Slow, sweet study of character and landscape
Summary: 5 Stars
I love this film. Yes, the 12 year old steals the show, but northern New Mexico itself in the early seventies is a close second. New Mexico was a powerful place. Still is, but was even more so when it was still "undiscovered." And the beauty is not overdone at all. Instead it is just constantly there, quietly reminding us of how much we have lost, in terms of connecting to nature and to ourselves. The folks who wonder what admirers love about the film see it as conrived and trite, and there is some of that. But it works. Partly because of the acting, which is excellent, and partly because it does not offer easy epiphanies or resolutions. The good things that come to the characters are hard earned. The things that matter most are indeed precarious. The power of the film comes from realizing how easily things are lost and how hard they are to gain. Looking back in time at her life at 12, the older version of the little girl sees beauty that eluded her then, when she was often bored and quite understandably wanted to escape to a more peopled landscape. Reminds us that "it is easier to get rich than to know when you are rich."Movie Review: Search It Out
Summary: 5 Stars
Finding Off the Map at a theater is likely to take some effort, just as finding the Grodens home in New Mexico does. Make that effort. It will be well worth your time.
Here's the plot line: Mom, depressed Dad and 12 year old daughter live in the far outback of New Mexico. Beautiful scenery, huge horizons, no electricity or indoor plumbing, and a kid who wants nothing more than to be taken away from all that. Enter William Gibbs, the IRS man from Albuquerque who wants to find out why the Grodens have not filed for seven years. His first vision -- the right word -- is Mom (Joan Allen) gardening naked and so entranced is he that he lets a spider bite him. Many complications, often happy, almost always wryly humorous, ensue.
Adapted from a play, and sometimes a bit stagey, Off the Map is entertaining, intelligent, profoundly human and well-acted. Call it a refreshing antidote to most cinematic dreck and bombast. The two films it most reminded me of are My Brilliant Career and Stand by Me. See it.